The following background information may present examples of specific aspects of the prior art (e.g., without limitation, approaches, facts, or common wisdom) that, while expected to be helpful to further educate the reader as to additional aspects of the prior art, is not to be construed as limiting the present invention, or any embodiments thereof, to anything stated or implied therein or inferred thereupon.
The following is an example of a specific aspect in the prior art that, while expected to be helpful to further educate the reader as to additional aspects of the prior art, is not to be construed as limiting the present invention, or any embodiments thereof, to anything stated or implied therein or inferred thereupon. By way of educational background, another aspect of the prior art generally useful to be aware of is that application of cold or heat therapy to an extremity, often a leg, is frequently performed for injury treatment and prevention in athletes. Acute and chronic injuries/diseases of the lower and upper extremities are common and are frequently treated with the application of cold therapy to the affected area. This may be performed frequently for the injured and healthy athlete alike. Many runners, for example, choose to apply cold via ice bags or other devices to their legs after long runs or may even take a lower body ice bath. Athletes with acute injuries such as cartilage, ligament, tendon, muscle or even bone injuries may choose to apply cold therapy to the injured area many times in a single day.
Common approaches for therapy include application of ice directly with ice in hand and massaging of area with ice, application of ice bags, submersion in ice baths or application of cooling packs or material to the affected area either using the hand or held directly to the affected area of the body directly by another device. Other approaches include cooling devices that require attachment to a refrigeration device or have cables/tubes extending out of the device.
Athletes, in events such as the triathlon, often submerge their entire lower body in a lake or other body of water following a race. Some athletes, particularly in endurance events perform a lower extremity ice bath in a bath tub or trash can immediately following events or training. Ice packs are often applied following injury to the lower extremity in events such as football or other many other sports.
In view of the foregoing, it is clear that these traditional techniques are not perfect and leave room for more optimal approaches.
Unless otherwise indicated illustrations in the figures are not necessarily drawn to scale.